“The reasons why victims of sexual violence don’t talk about what happened to them” (WEBINAR)

A webinar with Agnieszka Yarkovska, a Capuchin Sister who serves to protect minors and vulnerable persons in Slovakia. The sister reveals the barriers victims of violence (adults and children) face when telling someone about the fact of violence.

In particular, the speaker discusses three main barriers preventing victims from seeking help and sharing their experiences. These are the following:

• internal barriers
• barriers regarding other people
• barriers regarding the social world

She also analyses the biggest mistakes of people setting unrealistic expectations for the abused child. For instance, some believe that the latter:

• will actively defend themself from the abuser
• will immediately seek help
• will share their story in detail
• their narrative will be consistent
• will have visible signs of injury
• will have an outright negative attitude towards the offender
• non-abusing parents will protect the child

You can view the lecture part of the meeting using the link below.